Is there anything wrong with getting an Equalizer hitch that is a size too big? I am following the instructions on their website and it recommends a 10k but if I add a lot of extra cargo weight then it starts to recommend a 12k. The amount of extra cargo weight I put into their formula is probably more than I would ever have so a 10k hitch would probably be fine but I am wondering what is the harm in just getting the 12k hitch "just to be safe".To put it another way, if somebody asks me what size truck do they need to tow a popup then I would say any half ton should be fine but there is no harm in getting a 3/4 ton or 1 ton truck. Is this true for the Equalizer hitch also?

well, I look at it this way. I must be too tight because I think if you ever get a larger TT then you got the hitch already.

I'm no expert by any means. My dealer helped me with my E2 hitch, proper weight, and everything. But, from what I understand, if heavier duty bars could be too "stout" and not provide enough "flex" for your trailer. In other words, there is a bit of flexing that occurs with the bars. If they are too "stout" and won't flex, there is a possibility the trailer A-frame could bend. Like I said, I'm no expert, I'm just guessing. The other possibility might be to use the heftier bars, but not have to so tight. But that might counter measure the intent for having bars to begin with.

DutchmenSport wrote:I'm no expert by any means. My dealer helped me with my E2 hitch, proper weight, and everything. But, from what I understand, if heavier duty bars could be too "stout" and not provide enough "flex" for your trailer. In other words, there is a bit of flexing that occurs with the bars. If they are too "stout" and won't flex, It will also result in a very tight ride. Best to have the bars where they are suppose to be to allow some flex for a better ride.

I spoke with Equalizer about this very thing. I bought a TT with a 950 lb dry tongue weight, figured I'd be good with the 1200 after I was loaded, he convinced me to go with the 1400, in case I went over 1200 lb. Said it would be better to have too big than too small.Call them, tell them what you are towing, and what you are towing with, they will have the best advice.

Is there anything wrong with getting an Equalizer hitch that is a size too big? I Get the right tool for the job. Right size the hitch. Too big is not good nor is it better. Too strong of spring bars can damage the trailers tongue. Great discussion about this hitch on the Airstream forums. Not all is good!

Is it bad to get to big of Equalizer hitch | Good Sam Community

62 Replies

mfoster711
Explorer II
Dec 03, 2015
dodge guy wrote:
Yes if you are on the high end of a 1200 lb hitch then going to a 1400lb hitch may be OK.

dodge guy wrote:
Now we know using a 1400lb hitch on a 1200 lb tongue weight trailer isn't going to break anything (at least it shouldn't) but it will not be sized appropriately and adverse handling could result because of it.

I think you are sorta agreeing with me but I feel these two comments contradict each other. Lets use a specific example to help clarify.

Let's say the tongue weight of my camper is typically 1175 lbs so a 1200 lb hitch would be appropriate. But, we take some longer trips at times and bring a lot more stuff (especially bottled water/gatorade) and that stuff goes in the storage of my camper near the front. This extra stuff could easily increase my tongue weight to 1250-1275.

So, which hitch should I get? the 1200 or 1400 lb hitch?

Your second statement above would suggest that if I buy the 1400 lb hitch then when I am in my typical camping setup with 1175 lbs of tongue weight then "adverse handling could result". But, if I buy the 1200 lb hitch then I will be overload when going on longer trips.
dodge_guy
Explorer II
Dec 03, 2015
mfoster711 wrote:
dodge guy wrote:
Here is what I got out of that. If you don't do any research and you are not sure what your tongue weight is then buy the hitch that will work for everything! sounds like a customer service rep answer to me, "anything to buy our product!"

I think that is a misinterpretation of what he said. Also, you need to remember that his response is a response to my question. I did not ask if the 14k hitch will work for everything.

dodge guy wrote:
Or you can go by the educated answers and get the hitch that matches your loaded tongue weight.

I still don`t understand why everyone goes through all the trouble of looking at truck weights, trailer weights, GVWR and axle weights, and research on the vehicles your looking at, then throw all that knowledge out the window when looking for a hitch?!

Again get the hitch that matches your trailer loaded tongue weight!
I am curious, are you suggesting that there is only one size hitch from each company that is proper for a particular tongue weight? For example, if you have 985 tongue weight then the 1000 lb hitch is the only hitch that is proper and will work and that getting the 1200 lb hitch would cause a horrible ride and might cause a bent frame?

Ok back to your original question. Yes if you are on the high end of a 1200 lb hitch then going to a 1400lb hitch may be OK. But I would not do it because if it is 1200lbs then all you need is a 1200 lb hitch. If your getting into the 1250-1300lb range then yes go to the 1400 lb hitch! It's all in the research.

As far as one hitch from each manuf for a particular tongue weight.....yes each one has a system from 600 on up to 1800 or maybe even 2000lbs tongue weight. I know Reese makes (or they used to) make a hitch for PuPs. It was a single bar WD hitch for 400lb tongue weight. Now we know using a 1400lb hitch on a 1200 lb tongue weight trailer isn't going to break anything (at least it shouldn't) but it will not be sized appropriately and adverse handling could result because of it.

If your tongue weight is 1200 lbs get the 1200 lb hitch. My first trailer had between 750 and 800 lbs tongue weight, so I had 800lb bars. When I bought my current trailer the dealer swapped my 800lb bars with a set of 1200 lb bars, no charge, even though I was willing to pay for the new bars.

So in the end, it's always better and safer to match the loaded tongue weight to the WD hitch bars. It will handle and ride better, and be safer.

P.S. Notice how much more in depth our responses are to your question than the customer service rep at EQ (or any manuf. for that matter).
mfoster711
Explorer II
Dec 03, 2015
dodge guy wrote:
Here is what I got out of that. If you don't do any research and you are not sure what your tongue weight is then buy the hitch that will work for everything! sounds like a customer service rep answer to me, "anything to buy our product!"

I think that is a misinterpretation of what he said. Also, you need to remember that his response is a response to my question. I did not ask if the 14k hitch will work for everything.

dodge guy wrote:
Or you can go by the educated answers and get the hitch that matches your loaded tongue weight.

I still don`t understand why everyone goes through all the trouble of looking at truck weights, trailer weights, GVWR and axle weights, and research on the vehicles your looking at, then throw all that knowledge out the window when looking for a hitch?!

Again get the hitch that matches your trailer loaded tongue weight!
I am curious, are you suggesting that there is only one size hitch from each company that is proper for a particular tongue weight? For example, if you have 985 tongue weight then the 1000 lb hitch is the only hitch that is proper and will work and that getting the 1200 lb hitch would cause a horrible ride and might cause a bent frame?
mfoster711
Explorer II
Dec 03, 2015
Huntindog wrote:
mfoster711 wrote:
Huntindog wrote:
The customer service person has spoken.. EVERYONE should just get the 14K hitch.
That is not what he said and I really think you are getting a little extreme. What he did say was:
As far as getting a bigger hitch, if there is any possibility of going over the GVWR or tongue weight ratings of a certain hitch, I would get the next size up.

This advice is completely sound and is relevant to my initial question. This advice also matches up with the chart I found for Reese.

Does a 14k hitch work for any camper? I don't know. I'm not sure the 14k could be properly setup for a very light weight camper. Regardless, this is not what I was asking.
I pulled that sentence from what you posted as him saying... Perhaps you should read it again.

An engineer would NEVER say something like that.. They base what they say on their engineering knowledge, not what they have "heard".

A customer service person on OTOH will say whatever they think you want to hear.
Seriously Huntindog, he never said "EVERYONE should just get the 14K hitch". Reread it. Show me where he said that. Are you possibly misinterpreting something he said cause you want to keep arguing that point?

I think we all need to remember that his response is a response to my question and my question was about whether or not is is ok to get the next size up if you are on the high end of one size and not sure if you might ever load your vehicle enough to warrant the next size.

I did not ask Equalizer support "Is it OK to get the 14k hitch cause I figure it will work for everything"? If I would have asked that question then he may have replied very different and I am not going to assume what his response to that question is. If you want to know, you email them.

Let's get back to my original question and get off the debate of whether a 14k is OK for everything. I don't know the answer to that question. I did not ask support that question. I think most people don't really care about that question either. But, I do think there are people that are on the high end of one size hitch and are debating if it is OK to get the next size up just in case they have extra cargo at times.
dodge_guy
Explorer II
Dec 03, 2015
Here is what I got out of that. If you don't do any research and you are not sure what your tongue weight is then buy the hitch that will work for everything! sounds like a customer service rep answer to me, "anything to buy our product!"

Or you can go by the educated answers and get the hitch that matches your loaded tongue weight.

I still don`t understand why everyone goes through all the trouble of looking at truck weights, trailer weights, GVWR and axle weights, and research on the vehicles your looking at, then throw all that knowledge out the window when looking for a hitch?!

Again get the hitch that matches your trailer loaded tongue weight!

As far as the customer service rep stating no damage to a trailer frame........I do believe they haven't seen how some trailer frames are made or manufactured! If they did then they wouldn`t make that statement!
Huntindog
Explorer
Dec 03, 2015
mfoster711 wrote:
Huntindog wrote:
The customer service person has spoken.. EVERYONE should just get the 14K hitch.
That is not what he said and I really think you are getting a little extreme. What he did say was:
As far as getting a bigger hitch, if there is any possibility of going over the GVWR or tongue weight ratings of a certain hitch, I would get the next size up.

This advice is completely sound and is relevant to my initial question. This advice also matches up with the chart I found for Reese.

Does a 14k hitch work for any camper? I don't know. I'm not sure the 14k could be properly setup for a very light weight camper. Regardless, this is not what I was asking.
I pulled that sentence from what you posted as him saying... Perhaps you should read it again.

An engineer would NEVER say something like that.. They base what they say on their engineering knowledge, not what they have "heard".

A customer service person on OTOH will say whatever they think you want to hear.
LarryJM
Explorer II
Dec 03, 2015
mfoster711 wrote:
I think a lot of the replies have got a little off course from what my original question was (and I may have contributed to that).

To reword my question: The recommended hitch for my setup is the 10k hitch but if I slightly overestimate the amount of tongue or cargo weight then it starts to suggest the 12k hitch. I was wanting to know if there was any harm in getting the next size up "just to be safe" in case I do happen to load my truck and camper with this much additional weight.

The reply I got from Equalizer says this is 100% OK and they actually recommend getting the next size up if their is any possibility you might need it.

Realizing a lot of you are not talking specifically about the Equalizer hitch, I did some looking around and I also found this chart for Reese hitches.

This chart shows which hitch Reese recommends depending on your hitch weight. Based on this chart, there are two hitches you could choose for all hitch weight between 400-1500 pounds. From 1000-1200 you could actually choose between 3 hitches.

So in summary, when I take into account the reply I got from Equalizer and when I review this information from Reese, I would have to say it is completely safe to get the next size up if you have any doubt whatsoever that you might need it.

Is it OK to pull a popup with a 14k hitch? That is probably a different debate and is not what I really was asking.

Hopefully, but I doubt it, that chart from another MEGA hitch designer/manufacturer/player which is similiar to what Equal-i-zer is telling you about the myth that a WDH must be fine tuned to the actual current TW is just that mostly rumor and myth. In the past I have always thought going one size up was fine, but now would change that prior recommendation to include say a 1.4K/14K Equal-i-zer for tongue wts close to 1K with the only downside being it will be heavier and cost more. For me I still would not use or recommend something like a 1.4/14K hitch for a 600 or even 800lb TW. That is still just too far outside my personal comfort zone as to what to recommend to others as a NON EXPERT.

Larry
LarryJM
Explorer II
Dec 03, 2015
Huntindog wrote:
EQUALIZER wrote:
The only negative report I’ve heard about going bigger is a stiffer ride, and even this is when the “proper sized” hitch is a 6K and they go with the 14K.

This pretty much proves what I said earlier.

"I think that it's a pretty safe bet that EQUALIZER employed some engineers when designing their products.... And they designed it with different sizes.

I also think that it's a pretty safe bet that those calling EQUALIZER for advice are not speaking with any engineers... But just someone with a customer service title paid to answer the phones and stroke the callers egos. (that is what customer service is about, making the customer feel good.) I believe that EQUALIZER employs some who are very good at their customer service job.
I also believe that they employed some who were very good at their engineering job.."

The customer service person has spoken.. EVERYONE should just get the 14K hitch.

Now that the egos have been sufficiently stroked, they can save a bunch of money by firing all their engineers and making /stocking only the 14K hitch.

I love some of the terminology.

"The only negative report I’ve HEARD about going bigger"

That is not something an engineer would say... It is something that should be called heresay.... Which is not necessairily fact.

Again I will as you have now REPEAT that you have a right to your "NON EXPERT" personal opinion, which as it pertains to this subject I do not agree with your assessment that all that Equal-i-zer is providing is mostly marketing and non engineering based. I believe Equal-i-zer CS is head and shoulders above most other Customer Services out there and are not as you suggest a bunch of rogue representatives.

I hope folks like Ron and Dodge guy are reading and taking aboard the clear explanations on this damage rumor that Equal-i-zer tried to put to rest.

For the OP thank you for clearing up this 14K hitch for a 600lb tongue wt. aspect that I never believed you meant to be a substantive idea for debate/discussion.

Finally, I do appreciate Equal-i-zers comments concerning this "harsh/stiff" ride which was basically the only big concern I had expressed with their caveat that even with a non over sized system you can still get this with improper set up which I would assume to be based on something like too much wt. redistribution, but exactly the source is at least for me still somewhat unclear.

Larry
mfoster711
Explorer II
Dec 03, 2015
Huntindog wrote:
The customer service person has spoken.. EVERYONE should just get the 14K hitch.
That is not what he said and I really think you are getting a little extreme. What he did say was:
As far as getting a bigger hitch, if there is any possibility of going over the GVWR or tongue weight ratings of a certain hitch, I would get the next size up.

This advice is completely sound and is relevant to my initial question. This advice also matches up with the chart I found for Reese.

Does a 14k hitch work for any camper? I don't know. I'm not sure the 14k could be properly setup for a very light weight camper. Regardless, this is not what I was asking.
Huntindog
Explorer
Dec 03, 2015
EQUALIZER wrote:
The only negative report I’ve heard about going bigger is a stiffer ride, and even this is when the “proper sized” hitch is a 6K and they go with the 14K.

This pretty much proves what I said earlier.

"I think that it's a pretty safe bet that EQUALIZER employed some engineers when designing their products.... And they designed it with different sizes.

I also think that it's a pretty safe bet that those calling EQUALIZER for advice are not speaking with any engineers... But just someone with a customer service title paid to answer the phones and stroke the callers egos. (that is what customer service is about, making the customer feel good.) I believe that EQUALIZER employs some who are very good at their customer service job.
I also believe that they employed some who were very good at their engineering job.."

The customer service person has spoken.. EVERYONE should just get the 14K hitch.

Now that the egos have been sufficiently stroked, they can save a bunch of money by firing all their engineers and making /stocking only the 14K hitch.

I love some of the terminology.

"The only negative report I’ve HEARD about going bigger"

That is not something an engineer would say... It is something that should be called heresay.... Which is not necessairily fact.

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Is it bad to get to big of Equalizer hitch

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